


Priceless Prize

by AlexVaz01



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Drinking, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, debate au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-25
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2019-02-06 16:59:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12821997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlexVaz01/pseuds/AlexVaz01
Summary: Lapis Lazuli, That name made Peridot Diamond's skin shiver in anticipation, that was the name of her most fearsome rival... Or so she thought.Debate AU!





	Priceless Prize

**Author's Note:**

> First of all, The setting of the story is based on WUDC; World Universities Debating Championship; without a clear time.
> 
> Maybe the way things work in a WUDC are different, but this is based on my own experience, as a member of a debate team where I live, participating in each and every tournament I can get my hands on so... It may be a little different.
> 
> The format the debate's have is BP; British Parliamentary, Composed of 4 teams: Opening Government, OG; Opening Opposition, OO; Closing Government, CG, and Closing Opposition, CO. Maybe the roles will be explained later, if you need.
> 
> PM refers to the Prime Minister, The role that opens the debate.  
> PoI is a Point of Information, a question you can do in a speech of the opposite teams.  
> Round 0 is a special round that helps doing the seeding, Losing it means less experienced judges, that can lead to worst results and does lead to more uncertainty.  
> Social is usually a party done the day before the direct elimination phase starts; Usually is a great time for everyone, so I don't share Peridot's opinon on that.  
> Break is the fact you could or not come into that direct elimination phase, if you did; You broke... if you don't... Well...  
> Usually, the last debate of the first round doesn't release the results inmediatly, so they are uncertain until after the Social.
> 
> I don't know if there's something you can't understand, you can always ask in the comments, I would be glad helping and answering any question.
> 
> I felt like there was a lack of Debate AUs here HAHA
> 
> I hope you enjoy this story anyways!

There were some traits that Peridot hated about people.

 

She hated taller people, she hated know it all smirks and she hated the color blue. Peridot hated naturals and over complex arguments built over solid logic chains. The blonde girl hated airs of superiority, she hated people shutting her Points of Information and she hated solid personal anecdotes. The green eyed girl hated openings able to stay relevant through thick and thin, she hated closings that could turn a case and she hated creative and runaway paths through a debate.

 

Unfortunately for her, Lapis Lazuli was all of that.

 

An obnoxious girl sitting in a chair, chest full of pride and a little notepad full of scribbles and unintelligible letters, pointing as much stuff as she could from the PM and getting ready for her intervention.

 

Her hair grew blue but black roots were noticeable close to her scalp, she was just wearing a tank top and a long skirt, and Peridot could notice how her muscles tensed ready for the confrontation as soon as she jump from her chair, hand raised and ready to point out any kind of strange contradiction.

 

The smaller blonde groaned as she buried her head into the table, eyes closed as memories flooded her head; o years prior and the blonde’s first WUDC, Round 0 as her body was full of caffeine after a sleepless night, Lapis Lazuli and Beatrice Zircon, “BCU B”, ruining any kind of good placement in the tournament, specially the blue haired girl, backstabbing them from CG without remorse, making them look like a lost cause and leaving them in 4th place; They got to the break without any chance of them, “ECU C”, and losing two more debates against BCU, one of them to Lapis Freaking Lazuli, Peridot cried in her bed that night, frustration and anger filling her body as everyone else was enjoying a nice social, her mind focused only in how everything was her fault, Lapis Lazuli’s fault.

 

Peridot came back to Empire City with the mind focused on the experience she got from that, on practicing hard day after day until the next tournament arriving close, the blonde stood for nights unend speaking alone in her room, giving any kind of speeches to herself, reading, listening and watching everything and anything she could, until the marked day in the calendar came.

 

Once again, in the State tournament, Round 0 was a 4th place.

 

Lapis Lazuli and Beatrice Zircon’s fault.

 

Peridot couldn’t even count how many times they had lose to them, but she could remember every sweet victory, one in a meaningless practice debate with Beach City University, One in another State tournament; The small girl could remember the tears of happiness she had to hide when they were able to eliminate them from a National, keeping them away from breaking up.

 

But she could always remember the last match they had.

 

It was a quarterfinal, another State tournament they had, previous to this WUDC; The Motion was about Unpaid Internships and she felt they had a good idea, a good plan; In prep everything looked cool, perfect.

 

The bluenette stood up as soon as the Debate began, and the gears of the clock changed.

 

Neither her, or Yvette Zircon, her partner, had anything to say about her points.

 

And as OO, that kills your momentum and the possibility of advancing.

 

Peridot would never, ever forgive that, She would never forget how Lapis Lazuli made her look like an unprepared fool after so long, after giving so many hours, after sweating (or it’s debate equivalent) so many buckets, after giving everything she got and in seven minutes, destroy months of preparation.

 

And she groaned when the bluenette shut her mouth, POI quickly done and breaking the Opposition points, like a bullet shot through her mouth, if the looks on her partner were any sign of if.

 

When they closed the doors to leave the judge to decide the fate of everyone in the room, all teams with possibilities of breaking in a really close WUDC, “ECU A”, Peridot Diamond and Yvette Zircon felt like they had another 4th place, all thanks to Lapis and Beatrice.

* * *

 

Uncertainty was something that killed the blonde inside, She needed to fiddle with her fingers compulsively, she felt sweat filling her face, pooling in her brows, she felt like everything was boring but keeping her on edge at the same time, anyone could make her scared, everything made her jump in surprise, even loud noises… Especially loud noises.

 

So that’s why she didn’t knew why she had a glass full of alcohol and flashing lights around her, in the middle of the social she never attended but she let herself be pulled into by her only friend.

 

But her eyes hurt, the fast frenetic purple, pink and bright plain white light passing through them one after the other, the little alcohol she already had making her head a little dizzy, the incessant feeling of sweating through her shirt, the people collapsing around her, most of them other participants in the tournament, making her snicker inside, the “Brilliant minds of her generation” filled with booze and unable to even walk.

 

Peridot needed an out, right now, she needed to escape before her head blew up in a headache of giant proportions; She tried to walk, one foot after the other, but the dizziness was overtaking her, the people dancing and jumping to the loud music that was reverberating in her ears over and over again proved a hard challenge to dodge.

 

Yeah, she was a lightweight with alcohol, and yes, in her lack of attention she had drank more than she could have.

 

But she did, step after step, stumbling her way into the bathroom, the door closing behind her and every little sound being quieter outside of the room, the blonde walked slowly into a sink and she let the water flow through her fingers, damping her skin, she then let the water flow into her face, cleaning away everything, the sweat, the fear, the feelings; Peridot kept doing it over and over again until she felt better, raising her head and finding herself face to face with her reflection.

 

Her blonde hair was spiking everywhere, her green eyes had long black bags under them, her skin was even paler than what she was used to, she gave a vibe of someone sick, of someone afraid, she gave the idea she was another person, not herself, not the top student of her class, not a top class speaker; she was entranced by her own image, picking away at every fault of herself when a flushing sound make her jump.

 

She turned in her heels slowly, encountering a blue mane of hair in front of her.

 

Out of nowhere she felt a tight grip in her back, the sink digging into her hips and the face of one Lapis Lazuli hiding in her chest.

 

And suddenly every single nerve was on edge, as her damp hands couldn’t do anything to push her out, as her mind was entirely blank, maybe the alcohol left or the sudden action of Lapis Lazuli, her legs didn’t do anything either, she just stood there with Lapis hidden in her chest.

 

Her mind caught with her body, making her notice shirt was wet now, and she could hear muffled sobs.

 

Instinctively she lowered her arms, cradling the taller woman into her chest, one hand in the middle of her back and the other resting in her hair, so close to a wet cheek; No one came to the bathroom while Peridot protected Lapis Lazuli crying in her chest.

 

The sobs stopped, but the blue haired girl didn’t moved from there; Peridot, much for her dismay, began to feel weirdly good about it, it was a mixture of the feeling of the tiny strands of hair against her palm, Lapis’s smell, a sweet fragrance she never caught before, it was how natural it felt, like two pieces falling together, Peridot didn’t say a thing as the sounds stopped, the tears following shortly after, Peridot didn’t say a thing as Lapis just kept her position, hidden away between her breasts.

 

Until, as suddenly as it happened, Lapis Lazuli stood up, her red puffy eyes kept at the same level as Peridot’s greens.

 

Her lips whispered two words.

 

And they left a peck in her cheek.

 

Lapis Lazuli exited the room as Peridot started to become more and more red in her features, especially in her face.

 

“You’re Cute.”

 

And maybe, blue wasn’t as bad after all.


End file.
